It Will Rain
by Flames101
Summary: When JJ and Hotch are thrown together in Texas she wants nothing to do with him despite his constant attempts to speak with to her. When it seems like Hotch has finally had enough, JJ has to decide whether she wants to fix things or to just let things be. JJ/Hotch with special appearance by Reid. Two-shot. CCOAC Mix and Match Challenge Complete.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Hello. This little two-shot was written for CCOAC forum's Mix and Match Challenge and I am very, very late in getting this out. My pairing and prompts were: JJ/Hotch; Texas, bicycle, rainstorm, and class. The prompts will be spread over the two chapters. Title of this story is It Will Rain, inspired by Bruno Mars' song of the same name. Hope you enjoy!

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Criminal Minds.

**Chapter 1:**

* * *

JJ stared down the wide, busy hallways of the University of Texas, or UT as the students fondly referred to it. She was absolutely ready to give up and head back to the hotel.

"How could you lose him?"

She turned her perturbed glared on the emotionally stunted male to her right. "How could _I_ lose him?" she replied, her voice rising an octave or two as her anger at him continued to simmer beneath the surface. "You were the one who said, 'Go ahead, Reid, we'll catch up.'"

That last bit was done in her best monotone Hotch voice, the one she'd been practicing ever since they'd broken up almost two weeks ago.

"Never mind the fact that this is so not the time or place to have _that_ conversation…" she fumed, crossing her arms over her chest.

JJ, Hotch, and Reid had been tasked by Strauss to come to Austin and do a guest lecture to a Psych 101 class, something they normally didn't do. JJ had a theory that the bothersome Section Chief had known about their secret-from-the-bureau month long relationship and their subsequent break-up, and had sent them there as punishment. Throwing Reid into the mix was an added nice touch.

"What was I supposed to do, JJ? You haven't given me a chance to explain myself—" Hotch protested.

She held up her hand to his face. He'd broken her heart, that's all there was to it. What more did he have to explain?

"Can we just find Reid and go?" she cut him off tersely.

"Fine," he said gruffly. "Let's get this over with," he muttered under his breath.

JJ glanced at him unsurely; he had such a look of finality on his face that she wondered if maybe she'd finally pushed things too far.

He hurried forward and she had to push the worry from her mind, lest she lost Hotch in the crowd, too.

They had tried calling Reid but, either their cell service was acting up or he was just plain ignoring them. If it was the former, she did not want to lose Hotch without potential phone coverage. And if it was the latter, well, she was going to kill her son's Godfather.

On and on they walked the sunny Austin campus until an hour later there was still no sign of the genius and their moods had plummeted further.

Hotch exhaled a resigned breath. He dropped himself onto a bench and said, "I give up."

A voice in her head told her to resist the urge to comment, but she didn't listen. She was just too mad for words. "What else is new?"

JJ was thoroughly stunned when he suddenly yelled at her. "That is not fair, JJ!"

People stopped in their tracks, just as surprised as she was by his outburst. He'd never ever raised his voice to her. "Hotch, I—"

"No, you know what, I tried to explain. Now, I'm done," he shouted angrily. He stood up. "Find Reid, or not, I don't care!"

When he started to stalk away, she remained frozen to the spot, completely bewildered by what had just happened. _Oh God…_ that voice that had told her to shut up before, groaned inside her head. _What have you done?_

A tear slid down her face, bringing her back to life. She wiped it away, furiously, taking a breath, and a self-conscious look around. More eyes were on her now, some looking curious, some pitying, some downright amused. She could not stand still a moment longer and be these kids' source of entertainment. JJ forced one foot in front of the other, not knowing where she was going just thinking, _'anywhere but here…'_

Twenty minutes later, she found herself in yet another cavernous hallway, still alone, still no sign of Reid. She let out a huff of a breath, deciding the best thing to do now was head back to the hotel. The sooner this day ended the better.

She pushed off the wall she'd stop to lean against and turned right, hoping for an exit. Instead, she found even more classrooms, with doors that were fully closed or slightly ajar. It was when she passed by one that was a crack open that she heard a familiar voice.

"Actually, a vector space over a field F is a set of V with two binary operations…"

It was Reid! She had no clue what he was talking about, but it was him.

_Thank God!_ her brain screeched. She poked her head inside the classroom she'd heard his voice coming from. And sure enough, there he was at the front of the giant room that held some one-hundred students. He was inexplicably mic-ed up and the regular professor was nowhere in sight. But their notes were; and Reid was making marks all over his handheld device, having them pop on the large screen for the class to see.

It was some kind of math class that much JJ could figure out. But beyond that, she had no clue what the heck he was unexpectedly teaching.

JJ would have laughed at the situation if she weren't already so miserable over the mess with Hotch. She continued to stand at the back of the classroom, waiting for him to be done. She did not want to lose him again.

She listened to Reid lecture—he was surprisingly good at it, and had a certain charisma about him when he spoke about the topic he was so obviously knowledgeable about. Another twenty minutes later, JJ was amazed to find the class over and that she'd been so immersed in the topic—linear algebra, she'd gleaned—that for those minutes she hadn't thought about how hurt she really was.

JJ pushed off to the side to allow the students to file past her as she waited for Reid to be finished. A number of students had rushed down to have a word with her genius sidekick and she had a feeling, by the comments that she heard from the students, that they weren't going to be harsh words. In fact, looking down at Spencer, she could see him beaming. Well, at least one of them was enjoying themselves.

Finally, the last few students trickled out, all that was left was Reid and a young woman who she assumed was the professor. They were chatting and laughing, JJ couldn't hear what was being said. At one point, Reid looked up to the exit and seemed startled to see her standing there.

She gave him a wave and a look that she hoped conveyed her fineness with him taking his time. After all, she didn't want everyone to be miserable just because her life sucked. But the look must have fell short because he frowned at her. And the next thing she knew the Professor was hurrying up the steps.

The woman gave her a smile. "Your friend's smart… and cute," she said by way of greeting, no accent in sight.

JJ glanced down at Reid who was busy getting his things together. She hoped he hadn't been oblivious to this woman's crush on him. But knowing him… She quickly pulled her card from her pocket. Flipping it over, she wrote her friend's cell number on the back.

She handed it to the woman; she took it with a hesitant glance back at Reid. "I couldn't…" But the blush on her face totally said she could and would.

_Good, Reid can at least get something out of this stupid trip._ "We're here until tomorrow afternoon…"

The Professor offered her thanks and was on her way.

A moment later, Reid climbed the stairs meeting her at the very top of the lecture hall.

She gave him a smile. "You're good."

He grimaced. "What happened?" he asked, instead, more perceptive than she'd ever given him credit for.

Despite her feelings on useless girly-ness and waterworks, she abruptly wrapped her arms around her tall and skinny male best friend, letting the tears slide down her cheeks at will, now. God, she was standing in a University of Texas classroom, hugging her friend, bawling her eyes out. _Could this day get any better?_ she thought sarcastically.

With the tears came the words to describe the earlier incident with Hotch. She pulled away, once done, sniffling unattractively. Reid drew her back in, cupping her face with both hands, using his thumbs to wipe away the residual tears in a surprisingly tender gesture. "Oh, JJ…" he breathed out, the sadness in his voice cutting through her.

She swatted at his chest. "This is all your fault, you know…" she accused jokingly.

"My fault?"

"Yeah, if you hadn't left to become Super-Professor, me and Hotch wouldn't have been left alone… and he wouldn't have blown up at me," she replied, slightly less jokingly.

Reid looked at her pityingly. "I hate to tell you this, JJ, but _that_ was inevitable…"

"What?"

"He's been trying to talk to you forever… there's only so much brushing off a man can take," he said knowingly.

She turned away in annoyance. Though, if she looked deep inside she would see that Reid was right and the person she was truly annoyed with at the moment was herself. "Well, now I regret giving your number to that cute Professor…"

"What?"

JJ turned around and smiled at Reid, knowing he was just trying to help. "You're welcome."

He let out a nervous sigh. "Let's get out of here," he finally managed to say.

Walking through the halls, the melancholy from before came rushing back. "He's done with me, Spence…"

"He's not." She gave him a quizzical look. "The question is are you done with him?"

She furrowed her brow at him. "Never was. _He_ broke up with _me_."

Reid's mouth formed a thin line. "He had his reasons…"

"Reasons that he's been trying to tell me…" she finished for him. "And I've been pushing him away this whole time. God, am I an idiot or what?"

Reid opened his mouth to reply. "Don't answer that, Reid," she warned.

A minute later, Reid spoke up. "What are you going to do the next time he tries to talk to you?"

"If he does," she scoffed.

"He will."

"Fine, _when_ he does… I'll listen."

The words were easy to say, but she loved him and he'd ultimately broken her heart; it wasn't easy being in the same room with him, let alone standing face to face.

* * *

That's it for the first chapter. Next chapter will be up soon. And the rating will be going up. Hope you like and that you'll let me know what you think with a review. Thanks!

I've got one last message from Chit Chat on Author's Corner Forum:

**THE AWARDS SEASON HAS COMMENCED! Nominations have opened for the third annual Profiler's Choice Awards for Criminal Minds' fandom! Please visit Chit Chat on Author's Corner forum for the nomination ballot, rules and guidelines and category definitions. Please review ALL information BEFORE submitting your nomination ballot. ****Nomination ballots must be received by October 15, 2012. Fics for consideration must have appeared on the CM section of between September 1, 2011, and August 31, 2012 (see rules for full details.)**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** Hey all. Here's the conclusion to It Will Rain. Hope you enjoy. This chapter is probably more on the stronger T side than M. But, I'll leave it rated M just to be on the safe side.

**Disclaimer:** I do not own Criminal Minds.

**Chapter 2:**

* * *

Later in the day, JJ decided to take Reid's advice one step further. She marched herself over to Hotch's hotel room door and knocked on it. Instead of waiting for him to come to her, something he might not do considering his outburst earlier, she'd go to him and let him explain. It was the grown up thing to do, she was proud of herself for thinking so rationally. She was determined, now, to hear him out. But, when the door opened to reveal Reid instead of the tall, dark and handsome man, her face fell.

"He's not here," Reid conveyed apologetically.

JJ looked past him, out the balcony window. The sunny sky from before was now nowhere in sight, replaced by clouds and a rainstorm.

"He left a note saying he went out…"

"He's out, in this?" she said incredulously, worry for her one-time boyfriend on her face.

Reid shrugged. She said goodbye and went back to her room.

Entering the lonely space, she immediately went to the window, looking out at the overcast day. _Where is he?_ her brain wondered.

So much for doing the grown up, rational thing… now she feared she'd never get a chance to fix things with the man she loved. Her mood now matching the sky outside, she unthinkingly opened up the sliding door to the balcony and stepped outside.

It was cold and so very wet, but none of that mattered. The only thing she cared about at that moment was the fact that she had most likely screwed everything up with him, the man who'd been haunting her dreams for eight long years.

It was hard to get out of her mind the brief one month that her dreams had become a reality, making losing him harder than if he'd remained a dream.

_But, hey, he was the one who broke up with you,_ the angry voice—the one that she associated these days with Hotch—suddenly reappeared. _He was the one that convinced you to leave Will for him. Only to then break up with you a month later. Why is he mad? You're the one that has the right to be pissed off._

"But… but, Reid said," she replied to the voice out loud.

_Whatever Reid said doesn't change the fact that he ended things; what excuse could Hotch have for breaking up with you that gives _him_ the right to be mad?_

JJ honestly couldn't think of any. _That's right,_ the voice shot back angrily. _There isn't any_.

She continued to stand out there, oblivious to the rain falling down around her, shivering from the cold or anger, she wasn't sure which one. When suddenly a knock came at her door. She was just able to hear it over the pouring rain.

Absently, she went to the door, pulling it open without first seeing who it was through the peephole. When she saw who it was, though, through her ire, she found herself attempting to shut the door on him.

Hotch's hand shot out quickly, catching the door in time, forcing it to remain open. He looked just as furious as she felt. She backed up into the room, crossing her arms defiantly over her chest. He followed her inside, shutting the door behind him.

Turning back around she took in how his black dress shirt and pants were molded to his body. He had most definitely been out in the downpour.

"You are going to listen to me," he bit out sharply.

She looked off to the side indifferently. Yes, she'd basically promised Reid that she'd hear Hotch out when he finally came to talk. But, she'd rekindled her fury, making listening objectively hard.

"What's there to talk about?" JJ replied shortly. "You said we were over, so here's me being over you."

She sat down on the hotel bed only then realizing that she too was soaked through. Glancing down her body, the already thin pale yellow blouse did nothing to hide her body underneath. JJ met his eyes and she could tell, through the anger, that he'd been eying her with a different kind of heat. Hastily, she recovered her breasts with crossed arms.

"I said we should take a break and before I could explain what I meant you were jumping to conclusions," he accused.

Not caring if she looked indecent or not, she jumped off the bed, coming to poke him in the chest. "What else could you have possibly meant?"

He grasped the index finger, taking hold of her hand gently. Not letting go. "If you had listened, I could have told you that what I meant by taking a break was that we should take things slow."

"Slow?" she echoed; her mind in a sudden fog, caused by the skin to skin contact. "Why slow? I thought… I thought you loved me?"

He let go of her hand; instead, he gripped her shoulders and gave her a bit of a shake. His intensity frightened her a bit. "You married him, JJ! And then you divorced him, just like that."

"I did that for you!" she protested, wrenching her body away from him.

She turned away from, giving him her back. JJ knew when he'd come to stand behind her, though. He was close. His body heat radiated towards her, heating her chilled bones.

"Yes, I know," he replied, calmer, yet still a far cry from his usual stoic self. "But, things were moving so fast… we were practically living together… how were you to know that _I_ was who you wanted?"

She turned around, blue eyes blazing. "I knew! I loved you! I still love you… God, Hotch, don't you know the biggest mistake I ever made was ignoring my feelings for you and marrying him?"

"So, why did you do it?" he demanded.

The accusation in his voice made her falter. "I was scared, confused… I don't know…" She took in a shuddering breath, gaining some confidence. "All I know is that I fixed it when I figured it out. I divorced him. But then…" She gestured at him, feeling defeated by him.

He took in her words silently; she could see he was thinking things through. A light in his eyes, a moment later, told her he'd come to a bit of realization. He let out a harsh sounding sigh. "But then… _I _went and pushed you away," he conceded.

She let out a matching sigh. "Yeah…"

He turned away from her, giving her the chance to take in how the black fabric stretched across his tense back muscles. "I am such an idiot…" he muttered.

Tentatively, she closed the distance between them, touching his back. "If you're one, I hate to think what that makes me…"

He whirled around on her, taking hold of her hand once again. "Do you understand what I was trying to do?"

She nodded her head, and then just as quickly, shook it. "No… no, I don't."

Hotch looked at her intently for a good minute before replying. "JJ, we've been coworkers and friends for a very long time… and then we jumped into a relationship… I wanted to make sure that you knew what you were getting into with me… and that you had a chance to back away…"

"Did you want me to back away?"

"No," he replied swiftly and adamantly. His hand came up to cup her cheek, tilting her head up so their eyes met when he added, "_No._ I love you. You were the best thing to happen to me since Jack… I only… I just wanted you to be sure."

"Aaron, I was sure. I've been in love with you practically since day one… When you told me you loved me that was it for me and Will. That was what I was waiting for. I was so sure. I _am_ so sure."

"I'm an idiot," he said harshly. He took in a deep breath. "What are we going to do now?"

She smiled. It had all been a big misunderstanding. He really didn't want to be apart from her.

"You love me?" she asked to make sure.

"Yes."

"And I love you…"

Slowly and deliberately, JJ moved so that she pushed her body against his. His arms quickly dropped to encircle her, pulling her ever closer. "You're going to kiss me… and where we go from there… is anyone's guess…"

Hotch grinned, tipping his head closer. "Oh, am I?"

She perched up on her tip-toes, lips millimeters from his own. "You are if you know what's good for you…"

Taking her advice, he closed the remaining distance between them, touching his lips to hers, in a speedy, chaste kiss, that was so not enough for JJ. She pressed forward, demanding more. Her tongue ran along his closed lips, urging them to part, deepening the kiss.

She'd missed him so much. Even though she'd done her best to avoid him and had been angry at him through their whole separation, she'd still ached for him something fierce.

There was a reason why she'd fallen for him practically the second he'd interviewed her for the media liaison position. There was a reason she continued to love him even through his marriage, birth of his child, his divorce, and her mirrored life events. He was the best man she'd ever known, loving and caring, determined and devoted; he put other's happiness first, even before his own.

Even through his misguided attempt to give her space, he'd been thinking about her needs and wants. Someone needed to show him that he mattered too, that his happiness mattered. And she would be the one to do just that.

Her hands went to his chest, touching the wet fabric that covered his skin from her fingers. When her fingers started for the buttons, he caught her hands up in his, pulling away from the kiss.

"JJ?" His eyes questioned her.

"I want this…" she breathed out adamantly. "I want you. Just… don't ever hurt me again… Ok?"

He shook his head. "Never… never again. I love you."

"I love you, too."

Her hands made quick work of the buttons, sliding the black material off his shoulders. When his hands went to reciprocate, he said, "You're wet?"

"Oh, you know, just singing in the rain," she said, laughingly.

Her shirt came off just as fast. Soon, the rest of their clothes lay in a pile on the floor, and they lay together on the bed.

JJ opened her arms to him and he came to hover over top of her. His hands splayed across the flesh of her abdomen, teasing a trail upwards, until he cupped her breasts in his hands, massaging gently. She moaned out her approval, before her own hands gripped his hips urging him forward.

She wanted him, needed him. It had been too long since they'd been together.

Hotch getting the message, thrust forward, entering her smoothly, crying out his own pleasure. JJ held on tight, matching his rhythm as he moved in and out of her.

One of his hands came down to snake around her leg, hooking her knee up, making his thrusts feel so much deeper, bringing them so much closer.

They were together now and that's all that mattered.

* * *

"JJ?"

"Mmm…" she murmured from the vicinity of his chest.

Her fingers trailed random patterns across the bare skin. She felt truly relaxed for the first time in weeks. This was where she was meant to be, by his side, always. She just hoped he knew that now.

JJ propped her chin up on his chest to look up at him. She found him watching her with his dark eyes. The love in them was plain to see… maybe he did know.

"I'm sorry—"

She abruptly placed her hands against his lips. "Don't be. I'm the one who should be sorry—"

It was his turn to shush her with the same gesture. They lay there, in a moment of silence, before both laughed out loud.

"Can we at least both agree that we did something we shouldn't have and that we'll both never consciously do something to hurt one another again?" Hotch asked reasonably.

"Yes," she agreed quickly.

"Good," he answered decisively.

Replacing her cheek against his flesh, she was surprised when he suddenly chuckled.

"What?"

"Strauss is going to kill us?"

"I think dying is the least of our worries. We should worry about our jobs first," JJ said, grimacing.

She loved her job. Loved her new role in the team. But, she'd decided a long time ago, that this was worth it. _He_ was worth it.

He pulled her hand from his chest, bringing his fingers up to his lips, kissing the tips of each one, like he couldn't resist the action anymore.

"Oh, our jobs are safe… don't worry. I've done enough favors for her in the past month to keep us in her good graces for the next ten years… No, she's going to kill us because she lost the bet…"

"What bet?" JJ asked suspiciously.

"The bet she and Dave had about us… he bet we'd be back together by Christmas, she bet it would take till Easter…"

JJ leaned up again, to eye him incredulously. "They bet on our relationship and told you about it?"

"Nope." He grinned. "Reid told me."

JJ smiled. "I love Reid."

"Hey," he said, giving her a mock pout. "Don't go getting any ideas now… you're all mine."

"I wouldn't dream of it…" She giggled, giving his lips a peck. "Besides, Reid's on the verge of making his own love connection, he'll want nothing to do with me..."

"Fine by me."

Sometime later, as they lay together in blissful silence, JJ asked, "So, have you figured out where we go from here?"

"No idea…" he answered truthfully, giving her cheek a tender caress. "I'm good, though, as long as we go together…"

* * *

Well that's it for this one. I hope you enjoyed!

A big thank you to everyone who read and alerted, and to those who reviewed: **beaglelover719; NothingWithEverything; jekkah; JenTWCSINYFAN; and CMPerty.**

I hope you'll let me know what you think of this last chapter! Thanks!

**One last message from Chit Chat On Author's Corner:**

**THE AWARDS SEASON HAS COMMENCED! Nominations have opened for the third annual Profiler's Choice Awards for Criminal Minds' fandom! Please visit Chit Chat on Author's Corner forum for the nomination ballot, rules and guidelines and category definitions. Please review ALL information BEFORE submitting your nomination ballot. Nomination ballots must be received by October 15, 2012. Fics for consideration must have appeared on the CM section of between September 1, 2011, and August 31, 2012 (see rules for full details.)**


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